Editing Old Bridge Township, New Jersey (section)

== History ==
The first inhabitants of the area known as Old Bridge were the [[Lenape|Lenni Lenape]] [[Native Americans in the United States|Native Americans]]. Those who settled in Old Bridge and other parts of [[Central Jersey]] were known as the [[Unami people|Unami]], or "people down the river."<ref name=Story/> They migrated to the shore along the Raritan each summer from their hunting grounds in the north.<ref name=History/> When the English gained control from the [[Netherlands|Dutch]] in 1664, the state was divided into two provinces, [[East Jersey]] and [[West Jersey]]. In 1683, the general assembly of East Jersey defined the boundaries of [[Middlesex County, New Jersey|Middlesex County]] and the three other original counties ([[Bergen County, New Jersey|Bergen]], [[Essex County, New Jersey|Essex]] and [[Monmouth County, New Jersey|Monmouth]]) as containing all plantations on both sides of the [[Raritan River]], as far as [[Cheesequake State Park|Cheesequake Harbor]] to the east, then southwest to the Provincial line, with the southwest line being the border of [[Monmouth County, New Jersey|Monmouth]] and Middlesex counties and the Township's southern border.<ref>De Angelo, Walter A. [http://www.middlesexcountynj.gov/Government/Departments/BDE/Documents/history_buffs_guide.pdf#page=28 ''The History Buff's Guide to Middlesex County''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200929202842/http://www.middlesexcountynj.gov/Government/Departments/BDE/Documents/history_buffs_guide.pdf#page=28 |date=September 29, 2020 }}, [[Middlesex County, New Jersey]]. Accessed December 16, 2019. "On March 7, 1683, the Assembly of East Jersey established four counties, Middlesex, Bergen, Essex and Monmouth. Middlesex County's original boundaries ran from the Essex County line eastward as far as Cheesequake Harbour, then southwest to the boundary between the provinces of East and West Jersey, and then northwest to the provincial boundary of East Jersey."</ref>

Thomas Warne, one of the original 24 proprietors of East Jersey, was listed as a landowner of this area, and his son is said to have been the earliest European resident residing in the Cheesequake area in 1683. John and Susannah Brown were granted a {{convert|1,000|acre|km2}} land grant from the King of England in 1737. They called the area Brownville, and this part of township is still known as Browntown.<ref name=History/>

In 1684, South Amboy Township was formed. At that time, it covered an area that now consists of the Townships of [[Monroe Township, Middlesex County, New Jersey|Monroe]] and Old Bridge, the Borough of [[Sayreville, New Jersey|Sayreville]] and the City of [[South Amboy, New Jersey|South Amboy]]. The Township covers {{convert|42|sqmi}} that separated from South Amboy on March 2, 1869, and was originally called Madison Township.<ref name=Story/> In 1975, the name was changed by referendum to the Township of Old Bridge. The purpose was to establish a single postal designation and ZIP code for the township and to differentiate the township from the Borough of [[Madison, New Jersey|Madison]] in [[Morris County, New Jersey|Morris County]].<ref name=ArcadiaOldBridge>Launay, Michael J. [https://books.google.com/books?id=J2XlaA1H3CQC ''Images of America: Old Bridge'']. Charleston, SC. [[Arcadia Publishing]], 2002. {{ISBN|9780738509921}}. Accessed January 18, 2018.</ref><ref name=NYT2000>Cheslow, Jerry. [https://www.nytimes.com/2000/02/20/realestate/if-you-re-thinking-living-old-bridge-township-nj-fast-growing-but-with-rural.html "If You're Thinking of Living In/Old Bridge Township, N.J.; Fast Growing, but With a Rural Ambience"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160306165809/http://www.nytimes.com/2000/02/20/realestate/if-you-re-thinking-living-old-bridge-township-nj-fast-growing-but-with-rural.html |date=March 6, 2016 }}, ''[[The New York Times]]'', February 20, 2000. Accessed May 28, 2024. "Adopting the name Madison, the new township remained a sleepy farming community until 1950 when the postwar building boom hit. Within a decade, the population more than tripled to 22,772. By 1980, it had reached 51,406 and since then about 9,500 have been added."</ref> The community of [[Old Bridge (unincorporated community), New Jersey|Old Bridge]] in [[East Brunswick, New Jersey|East Brunswick]] derives its name from the fact that the first bridge spanning the [[South River (Raritan River tributary)|South River]] was built there, and as other bridges were built across the river the first one became known as "the Old Bridge."<ref>{{cite web |title=History |url=https://www.eastbrunswick.org/402/History |publisher=East Brunswick, New Jersey |access-date=June 18, 2021 |archive-date=June 9, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210609115416/https://www.eastbrunswick.org/402/History |url-status=live }}</ref>